Salt Lake City Police uncovers suspicious activity at five massage businesses in Ballpark neighborhood

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — The Salt Lake City Police Department has uncovered “violations” at five different massage therapy locations within the Ballpark neighborhood.

The violations were found as a result of undercover operations conducted by SLCPD’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU).

According to a press release, SLCPD is working with the city and Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DPOL) to address the violations. However, “due to the ongoing nature of these investigations, no specific details about the businesses can be released at this time.”

Undercover operations were launched at six different businesses in response to community concerns within the neighborhood of possible illegal activity occurring during massage appointments. Of the six locations investigated, suspicious activity was found at five of them.

“As part of its enforcement responsibilities, the SLCPD conducts random inspections and, occasionally, undercover operations to make sure massage therapy establishments and employees are not offering or engaging in illegal sexual activity under the guise of legitimate services,” police said.

Additionally, the SLCPD acknowledged that elements of human trafficking have been connected to massage businesses in the past.

Police encouraged anyone with information about suspected illegal activity at massage therapy businesses to call 801-799-3000.